Velo City: Bicycle Culture and City Life

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento

The Italian Stelbel brand was founded in 1973 and named from a portmanteau combining the first and surname of Stelio Belletti. Stelio was a true man of steel; raised in a family of engineers and metalworkers. He worked on everything from aircraft fuselages to Mike Hailwood’s motorcycle chassis, before establishing himself as one of Italy’s preeminent framebuilders.

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento

Roughly translated from the Italian, Inseguimento means pursuit — or chase — so this is the Stelbel Dynamic pursuit frame, reinvigorated by Cicli Corsa Classico, purveyors of the best of Italian cycling. CCClassico have been dedicated to researching the history of the Stelbel brand, to the extent of establishing a Wikipedia page about Stelio and his work.

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento

The tig-welded Inseguimento frame was acquired in an original condition and did not need any restoration work, which CCClassico do offer as a service. Ironically, the paint scheme is still current, a sure sign that style does move in cycles. It is the first Stelbel owned by one of the partners of CCClassico, Andrea, and bears the serial number stamp of 86 155.

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento

Andrea tells us: “It shows several ‘aero details’ and a ‘5th generation’ fork. As you would know, all Stelbel fork crowns were made from scratch with no ready-made components. The design of this detail changed significantly during the 80s — at least 5 times. For the 5th generation, introduced in 1986, the blades were welded directly to the steerer.”

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento

It’s always difficult to tell with pursuit frames, or ‘funny bikes’ as they have become known, but this is a very large frame, made for a pistard called Marco Morselli, whose name you can see engraved on the foil near the bottom bracket. As standard, it has been finished with Campagnolo Record pista cranks and hubs, Ambrosio Aero Dynamic rims and a pantographed 3ttt stem.

As mentioned, Cicli Corsa Classico offer a full restoration service and they specialize in vintage Italians, so if you have a beloved Rossin, Conti, Ciöcc or Paganini hanging up in the garage, drop them a line via the website. And keep an eye out for the Stelbel brand, which is soon to rise again, like a proverbial phoenix.

Stelbel Dynamic Inseguimento